6d or 70d

[Derrel]

I was watching this video a few days ago, and what stuck in my mind was how poor the 6D did in his three-part autofocusing test, on a single moving jogger, in bright, clear, Hawaii sunlighted conditions. I was not that impressed with the roughly 30 to 40 percent AF failure rate, especially on stuff as dead-simple as a single jogger moving at a steady pace, in a straight-line direction...I mean...I dunno...just not confidence-inspiring to me.



The 6D has only ONE, single cross-type AF bracket, smack-dead in the center of the frame, and ALL FF d-slr's have pretty much fairly centrally-weighted AF patterns, whereas APS-C cameras often have almost full viewfinder coverage, and many APS-C cameras have 9 to 15 cross-type AF brackets, which tends to make it easier for the AF system to get lock-on on smooth-detail stuff, and/or can be used to help aid the AF system in predictive focus, useful for moving subjects.

I'd start at 5:20 with the focusing system tests, and just watch what he has to say and show.

 

[runnah]

EPIC!!!!

 

[Derrel]

EPIC!!!!

Yes...for YouTube, it is epic...34 amazing minutes long! And, it actually has repeated tests, in a familiar format, with actual numbers, and test protocols the user can see being done on-video, as well as evaluation and commentary that makes sense. My point was that in bright light, with a dead-simple target, the 6D's AF system was returning roughly 30 to almost 40 percent out of focus shots...I don't think that's a very good hit rate for a camera to be used as a sports camera.

I think an APS-C camera body with a higher-level focus system as a design PRIORITY might be a better choice for a sports shooting camera. But then, that's based on my own personal experience of two years of newspaper sports assignments using professional Nikon bodies. I think the 6D's AF system is probably optimized for single-shot AF acquisition, much more so than servo AF. It's got its strengths, but it seems that its servo AF capabilities--in BRIGHT, Hawaii-level light, at what? EV 15,16? is not very good. IT IS However, pretty good at low-light, single-shot AF, which is more what a landscaper or a wedding shooter would demand.

 

[runnah]

EPIC!!!!

Yes...for YouTube, it is epic...34 amazing minutes long! And, it actually has repeated tests, in a familiar format, with actual numbers, and test protocols the user can see being done on-video, as well as evaluation and commentary that makes sense.

You and I have very different definitions of epic.

 

[JacaRanda]

EPIC!!!!

Yes...for YouTube, it is epic...34 amazing minutes long! And, it actually has repeated tests, in a familiar format, with actual numbers, and test protocols the user can see being done on-video, as well as evaluation and commentary that makes sense. My point was that in bright light, with a dead-simple target, the 6D's AF system was returning roughly 30 to almost 40 percent out of focus shots...I don't think that's a very good hit rate for a camera to be used as a sports camera.

I think an APS-C camera body with a higher-level focus system as a design PRIORITY might be a better choice for a sports shooting camera. But then, that's based on my own personal experience of two years of newspaper sports assignments using professional Nikon bodies. I think the 6D's AF system is probably optimized for single-shot AF acquisition, much more so than servo AF. It's got its strengths, but it seems that its servo AF capabilities--in BRIGHT, Hawaii-level light, at what? EV 15,16? is not very good. IT IS However, pretty good at low-light, single-shot AF, which is more what a landscaper or a wedding shooter would demand.

Convinced me. 6D and sports, even at night? Nope.

 

[Derrel]

Your video lasts nine seconds, and you call it "epic"? Hmmmmm....quick-draw Mcgraw much?

 

[runnah]

Your video lasts nine seconds, and you call it "epic"? Hmmmmm....quick-draw Mcgraw much?

9 seconds in heaven is better than no seconds! amirite?!

 

[robbins.photo]

Your video lasts nine seconds, and you call it "epic"? Hmmmmm....quick-draw Mcgraw much?

Derrel, do you post stuff like this intentionally to get me trouble? Lol - ok, no going down this road. Yup.. just not going to do it. Avoiding temptation. Quick-Draw McGraw.. Lol

But that is great info on the 6d - looks like other than for portrait/landscapes it really isn't that good of a choice it would seem.

 

[Luke345678]

So I decided to go through spec by spec to see the difference between the two cameras. Honestly, the 70d is actually 10x better. The only thing the 6d has the advantage in is the ISO.
Here is a little comparison of the two cameras that I put together...



D70 6d
Max ISO 12,800 25,600 (Winner)
Focal Points 19 (Winner) 11
Focal Length Multiplier 1.6 (Winner) 1x
Touch Screen Touch No -
Max Shutter 1/8000 (Winner) 1/4000
Built in Flash Yes (Winner) No - Here if you want to fire a flash remotely you need something to trigger it. Having a built in flash help with that vs having to buy a trigger for 6d
Video Way better OK

Af System Better Not too great

 

[lennon33x]

Canon 6D vs 70D - Our Analysis

Side by Side Comparison: Digital Photography Review

I just went from a T3 to a 5Dc. Granted, we're comparing apples to filet mignon at this point (moving from the T3 to the 5Dc), but I absolutely love the full frame low ISO performance. Noise is much more apparent when I get to about 1600+ on the 5D, but noise appeared much worse on the T3 at around 800.

I'll never go back to crop-sensor. Ever

 

[lennon33x]

So I decided to go through spec by spec to see the difference between the two cameras. Honestly, the 70d is actually 10x better. The only thing the 6d has the advantage in is the ISO. Here is a little comparison of the two cameras that I put together... D70 6d Max ISO 12,800 25,600 (Winner) Focal Points 19 (Winner) 11 Focal Length Multiplier 1.6 (Winner) 1x Touch Screen Touch No - Max Shutter 1/8000 (Winner) 1/4000 Built in Flash Yes (Winner) No - Here if you want to fire a flash remotely you need something to trigger it. Having a built in flash help with that vs having to buy a trigger for 6d Video Way better OK Af System Better Not too great

A couple of things that I would like to touch on...

ISO...I'm not sure of any photographer that would really utilize 12k ISO (much less 25,800). Even for a Mark III, that's going to bring in a considerable amount of noise.

I'm not sure I've ever needed above 1/4000 of a sec shutter speed either.

And talking about on camera flash, I've never been impressed with any on camera flash. I would rather put a 430 ex II on the hot shoe than to have pop-up flash. There's more control with it.

Consider this...I ALMOST purchased a Canon 1D Mark I. It had x-sync of 1/500 and a 1/16,000 second shutter speed. But I realized I would probably never go over 1/4000 sec shutter and I use a trigger system for OFC. The full frame made more sense for me

 

[jsecordphoto]

I'll use the higher iso's (6400+) for test shots in low light to check my composition sometimes, thats only when it's basically pitch black out though.

 

[lennon33x]

I'll use the higher iso's (6400+) for test shots in low light to check my composition sometimes, thats only when it's basically pitch black out though.

I don't disagree. But how many of those shots actually occur? Maybe 10-20 out of every 1,000 at best? And is that enough to warrant deterring of a purchase of a full frame camera?

Also, how much noise reduction do you have to do in post? I'm asking a serious question here. Depending on my light, I try to stay away from ISO 3200 (the expansion in the 5Dc). It gives me too much noise and I can't get great sharpness (depending on my lens) because of AF discrepancies. I actually get sharper pictures with my Rokinon 85mm manual focus than my 50mm 1.8 II (yeah, yeah I know it's the cheaper one...I just splurged on the 5D instead of a 50mm 1.4).

 

[jsecordphoto]

I always have to do some noise reduction in post when shooting at high iso's, but the only time I use 16-3200 iso is when doing astrophotography. I shoot primarily landscapes so the only time I really go above iso400 is when doing landscape astrophotography. I saw that they just dropped the price of the 6D down to around $1500 though

I personally do quite a few test shots at the expansion iso's but that's because I shoot at night pretty often lately. Not something I'd imagine most photographers would have to do

 

[lennon33x]

I always have to do some noise reduction in post when shooting at high iso's, but the only time I use 16-3200 iso is when doing astrophotography. I shoot primarily landscapes so the only time I really go above iso400 is when doing landscape astrophotography. I saw that they just dropped the price of the 6D down to around $1500 though

I personally do quite a few test shots at the expansion iso's but that's because I shoot at night pretty often lately. Not something I'd imagine most photographers would have to do

Yeah I agree. For the OP, unless he's doing astrophotography, utilizing a FF camera might be the better option. Or the 7D if he's doing sports/action.